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An Eagle Scout Project in Guatemala

When Jay Hajost was planning his Eagle Scout Project, he decided to do something unconventional. He had been to Guatemala a few times on mission trips, and wanted to find a way to help people there. His church sponsors a Cub Scout Pack at a church there, so he decided to make a project that would support Scouting internationally.

Hear what Jay has to say about his project and watch a video recapping the project below:

This was my 5th year going to Guatemala as a mission team member from my church. Additionally our troop sponsors a Cub Scout pack. It seemed natural for me to do my Eagle scout project down there where the needs are so great. I have been to a lot of communities and very few have a playground for the children. I knew our team was going to go for the first time to a new village (really a shanty town) so it became an initial place to investigate. I knew a new playground would be appreciated in this village. I could purchase some the materials and the plans here, but I would need to buy the wood locally. I had to coordinate with the local Guatemalan ministry pastor whom my church supports.

The project took four days, two of which were on-site constructing the play set with some assistance from locals including adults and children. In the end it was very exciting watching these kids learn to swing for the first time.

I wanted to share this story so that other Scouts might be motivated to do projects outside the U.S.